


i can name a couple ways, baby, this shit might go

by Corellia



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Ben is 19, Everyone is a hot ass mess, F/M, Foster Dad Luke, Gen, M/M, Rey is 16, Teen Romance, Underage Drinking, Underage Drug Use, bitches just wanna party, take that as you will
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-08
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:47:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22169644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Corellia/pseuds/Corellia
Summary: If you told Rey she would be hiding from the cops in a bush with Ben fucking Solo, she’d call you a liar.orthe teen party fic no one asked for
Relationships: Background relationships - Relationship, Poe Dameron/Finn, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 18
Kudos: 81





	1. Chapter 1

“You’re coming to Hux’s party right?”

Rey shut her locker door to reveal the hopeful face of Kaydel, still carrying her books from last period. It was the end of a stupidly long Friday and all Rey wanted to do was get out of the school and get into bed as soon as possible. She enjoyed Kaydel, and was happy that they became fast friends when she transferred to Coruscant High at the beginning of the year, but she was too exhausted to have this conversation. 

“Did you really just ask me if I’m going to Hux’s party?” Rey adjusted the straps on her backpack and made her way towards the doors, Kaydel hot on her heels. She struggled to put her books into her messenger back, trying to match Rey’s strides on much shorter legs. 

“Rey, you have to come! Rose and I can’t be the only sophomore girls there. We’ll get eaten alive.” Kaydel shoved her way through a gaggle of freshmen that had clogged the middle of the hallway, “Ugh, move.”

“When has that stopped you before?” Rey teased. She weaved her way through students just getting out of class, all of them desperate to start the weekend. Looking towards the double doors at the end of the hall that were now propped wide open by a sea of students, she thought she could see the back of Finn’s head.

“Rey, please!” Kaydel grabbed her arm. Rey turned to face her and saw something rare: nervousness. Kaydel usually exuded the confidence of a middle aged white man who had never been told “no” before. “I think Snap wants to ask me out.” 

That was no surprise. Rey had spent the last semester watching them make googly eyes at each other during AP Chem. Snap was a senior, and not exactly Rey’s type, but he seemed like a nice guy who always held the door for other students and sometimes brought in munchkins from Dunkin to share.

“That’s great!” Rey tried to sound happy for her. She was, truly, but god she had to get out of this freaking building. She looked back to where Finn was and saw he was gone. “Shit. Sorry, I mean, why does that mean I have to go to Hux’s stupid party?”

Kaydel sighed and let go of her. She reached up and fiddled with a strand of hair that had come loose from one of her buns. 

“Because I...look, I know I act like I’m hot shit, because I am, but I really like him and don’t want to make myself look like a dumbass in front of a bunch of seniors. I could really use you and Rose there as moral support.” She widened her brown eyes and stuck out her lower lip. “Please?”

Rey paused. Kaydel really had been so good to her all year. She lent her tampons when she ran out, helped her with her French homework, and had taken her into a group of friends she might have never made otherwise. She really did owe her one.

“Fine.” Kaydel grinned and bounced on her heels.”Only if I can get a ride from Poe.”

“Rey, you are such a lifesaver. Thank you so much.” Kaydel pulled her phone out of her jeans pocket and started typing.”I’m texting you the address. I think it starts at ten. Oh!” She pointed a French tip nail at Rey. “Wear something sexy. Ben is probably gonna be there.”

Rey could feel her cheeks flush. Ben. The bane of her existence (or so she tried to convince herself).

“Whatever.” She said quickly, adjusting her backpack again. “I don’t care if stupid Ben’s there.” Fucking Ben. Stupid fucking Ben with his stupid fucking ears and stupid fucking face and-

“Yeah, sure, babe.” She tried not to notice Kaydel rolling her eyes as she shoved her phone back into her pocket. “I’ll see you tonight, okay? Don’t bail on me, or I’ll come for your left shoes.” She smiled as Rey chuckled at their silly inside joke. With one last squeeze of her arm, Kaydel made her way towards the door, yelling a “Text me!” over her shoulder. 

Rey sighed and pulled out her own banged up IPhone 6 as she walked, a birthday gift from Luke that nearly sent her into hysterics. She saw a missed call from Finn and a text reading “where u at peanut?” along with the text from Kaydel with the address and a bunch of eggplant emojis. She quickly typed a response to Finn to say she was on her way and finally stepped out the doors. It was a warm May Day and she breathed a sigh of relief that she didn’t have to back into that stuffy school for another two days. She jogged over to the parking lot where she could see Finn leaning against Poe’s red Honda Pilot. 

“Hey!” She called as she got closer. “Sorry for making you wait, Kaydel accosted me.”

“No worries.” Finn said with a smile, getting in the passenger seat. Rey climbed into the backseat, tossing her backpack on the floor and buckling in. 

Poe, who was already situated in the drivers seat, turned to look at her, lowering his sunglasses. 

“Hey, cutie. Kay mention Hux’s party tonight?”

“Ugh,” Rey groaned, banging her head on the back of the seat, “why is everyone obsessed with this dumb party?”

“Because Hux’s dad doesn’t really love him and he lets him throw ragers when he’s out of town to pay for it.” Poe shrugged and started to creep out of his parking spot, dark eyes keeping a look out for passing kids. “Armitage may be an insufferable prick but he knows how to host a party.” He turned forward again, one hand on the wheel, the other on Finn’s knee as they drove out of the parking lot.

“Rey doesn’t really do parties.” Finn shot her a sympathetic smile. Like herself, he had also been a foster child before being adopted by his foster father, Lando, when he was a kid. They had met on the first day of school in homeroom at the beginning of sophomore year and had an immediate connection. It was like they had spent their whole lives looking for each other without even knowing it. Rey honestly didn’t know what she would have done without him. 

“Seriously though, there’s something there for everyone. Food, drinks, dancing, swimming in his gigantic indoor pool, although that’s risky.” Poe laughed. “Fuck, last party I went to Gwen Phasma had a knife throwing contest in the basement.” He looked proudly at his boyfriend. “Which I won.”

“Aren’t you cool?” Finn teased, squeezing Poe’s hand. “But for real, Rey, don’t go if you don’t want to. I’ll stay home with you and we can watch Luke’s old karate tapes again.”

Rey thought about it. She had become quite the homebody since she came into Luke’s care. In her other foster homes, she tried to be out as much as possible, going back only to sleep and shower. But with Luke, as gruff and serious as he could be, she felt a sense of safeness and security she had never had before. She didn’t dread being stuck at home on the weekends and quite enjoyed reading while Luke did his meditations or watching Golden Girls reruns with him. But she had made a promise to Kaydel and she didn’t think Luke would mind being left alone for one night.

“No...I want to go. Maybe it’ll be good for me to...venture out of my comfort zone.”

Poe let out a loud whoop.

“That’s my girl! You’re gonna have so much fun. I’ll make sure of it.” He said with determination only Poe could have. Finn turned to give her another smile.

She smiled back.

Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad after all.

(Wrong.)


	2. Chapter 2

In all the foster homes she had been in throughout the years, Rey never had to deal with their extended families.

Most people she stayed with kept her hidden away like Cinderella, leaving her home alone when birthday parties, holidays, or family get-togethers occurred with a list of chores to complete. It had bothered Rey when she was a child, when she was still so desperate for a family to call her own. She would cry when they left and would wait at the door until they returned, hoping they brought back a guest who was interested in her. But as she got older, and the overwhelming loneliness faded to a dull ache, she enjoyed the opportunity to have alone time. She was able to watch whatever she wanted on TV and help herself to snacks she wasn’t allowed. 

But things were different with Luke. Things were always different with Luke. 

Rey had been with him for less than a week when he told her over a breakfast of cereal that his sister and her son would be stopping by to meet her. Rey had nearly choked.

“Why would they want to meet me?” She had coughed, pounding on her chest. No one had ever wanted to meet her before. 

Luke just looked at her with piercing blue eyes and said, “Why wouldn’t they?”

Luke revealed that he and his twin sister had been raised separately, him by an aunt and uncle and her by friends of their deceased parents out west. They had been aware of each other’s existence growing up, but didn’t meet until Leia’s family had moved back into the area when they were teenagers. 

“We try to get together often to make up for the time we lost.” 

So, Rey met Leia.

She loved her. 

But then she met Ben. 

And God did she fucking wish she hadn’t. 

  
——

There was a rapt knock at her bedroom door.

“Rey, the boys are here.”

“I’ll be right down!”

Rey listened to Luke’s retreating footsteps before slipping off her bed and moving to stand in front of the mirror that hung on her door. She had to admit she wasn’t the most fashionable girl, and didn’t have many clothes that weren’t leggings and t-shirts. Having spent the last hour digging through her closet, she managed to find a somewhat decent outfit. Slightly frayed skinny jeans that she had gotten on one of her rare shopping trips and an off-white camisole she had stolen from the daughter at her last home. It looked better on Rey anyways. 

“Don’t be nervous. You look cute.” She whispered to herself, running a hand through her hair. She had decided to keep it down instead of in its usual three buns. “You’re going to have fun. Stop reminding yourself to have fun.” She rubbed one last time at her smudged eyeliner, hoping it would make the smokey eye she copied from a YouTube tutorial look better. She probably looked like a raccoon but it was too late to try and fix it.

With one last glance at herself, Rey opened the door and made her way downstairs. Rounding the base of the staircase, she saw Poe and Finn situated on the couch, chatting in soft voices with Luke, who was stretched out in his recliner across from them. They both had on jeans, Poe donning a bright Hawaiian shirt that could only look good on Poe and Finn wore his boyfriend’s old jacket over a black t-shirt.

“Still thinking Air Force, Mr. Dameron?” 

“Yes, sir, after college.” Poe smiled proudly. His parents met in the Air Force, and Poe had spent the first thirteen years of his life bouncing around the country before his mother retired and they settled in Coruscant. A junior, Poe needed to start applications in the fall. “Finn has been helping me look at pla-holy crap, you look great.”

Three sets of eyes landed on Rey and she immediately felt five inches tall. Finn gave her one of his big grins and rose from his seat.

“Dang, look at my peanut.” He threw his arm around her shoulder, giving her a squeeze. “Lookin’ like a whole snack.”

Rey resisted the urge to stomp on his foot and just blushed instead. It wasn’t often she got male attention, even if it was from two guys who had no interest in women. “Alright, that’s enough. We better get going. Kaydel’s been blowing up my phone.”

Luke have her a pointed look and gestured towards her bare arms. He looked ready for bed in his night robe and slippers, reading glasses low on his nose. 

“You’re not going to be cold?” He asked, rising from his seat with a groan. He taught several private karate lessons that afternoon and complained of a sore back when he got home. Rey had dutifully grabbed him his heating pad, still feeling the need to earn her keep after several months of living there. 

“If she gets cold we’ll squish her between us like a slice of ham between rye.” Poe stood up and held out his hand for Luke. “We’ll probably be back around two.”

Luke shook his hand with a hard squeeze. Rey held back a laugh as she saw Poe grimace.

“And no one is drinking and driving, correct?”

“No, sir,” Finn piped up, “I’m the DD.”

Luke hmphed and let go of Poe’s hand, who quickly rubbed his knuckles. He moved to stand next them, mumbling something about damaged tendons. 

“On your way then. Rey,” those sharp blue eyes found hers, “call me if you need anything. Anything at all.”

That was the thing about Luke. He always made Rey feel like she could count on him. Growing up she could count on adults for two things: verbal abuse and a sharp slap on the ass if she misbehaved. She felt a lump rise in her throat and quickly nodded.

“I will.” 

Luke followed the trio to the front door, reminding them again to call if things went awry. He waited until they were all settled and buckled in before shutting the door, probably to head upstairs and go to bed. 

“Luke reminds of me, like, a wise old wizard or something.” Finn said as Poe backed out of the driveway. It would take them a little under ten minutes to get to Hux’s McMansion. “One that would fuck you up if you touched his potions.”

“I mean, that’s one way to put it,” Rey agreed, fiddling with a stray thread from her top. “Do you really think I look okay? I’m afraid my boobs are gonna fall out of this shirt.”

“Only if we’re lucky, baby girl.” Poe laughed and turned to blow her a kiss. “And if Ben is lucky.”

Finn quickly smacked the back of his head.

“Ow! Babe! My hair!”

“Shut up, dumbass. If _we’re_ lucky he won’t be there.” Finn reached his hand over the middle console to awkwardly pat at her knee. “You look great, Rey. Honestly.”

“Is today the ‘cause Poe bodily harm day’? The fuck...” Poe muttered under his breath, rubbing the back of his head. 

“Thank you, peanut.” Rey took a deep breath. “I got this.”

(She ain’t got shit, she will soon find out.)


	3. Chapter 3

There was a rumor around the school that Hux’s dad was secretly a drug dealer.

Whether that was true or not had yet to be determined, but everyone knew that whatever his father did for a living, it made him a shit ton of money. Hux always wore expensive clothes and watches and drove a Rolls Royce to their high school that barely had functioning plumbing. His slight accent was due to the several British nannies that had raised him and he constantly looked like he was smelling something foul.

Rey did not know him well beyond the one class they had together last semester, Women’s Literature, where they sat next to each other. So while she didn’t know what his deal was and why he was such a prick, she certainly knew how he felt about Louisa May Alcott.

“I just don’t understand why Amy has to be so insufferable,” he had drawled one class, earning the groans of his peers. 

A brave soul called out, “She took inspiration from you!” 

Ms. Holdo had to physically step between Hux and the offending student before anything happened.

But despite the fact she had no real issue with him, Rey was the only one he scowled at when they entered the bustling party. They had gotten there at ten-thirty and things were in full swing. From the front door to the kitchen, the trio had already passed a beer pong table set up in the hallway, several couples giggling and making out in various corners, and a girl absolutely hammered crying to her friends about how much she loved them. Rey looked up and could see speakers attached to the ceiling, blasting Kendrick Lamar. She held onto the back of Finn’s jacket as they pushed through the throngs of people. The last thing she needed was to get lost in this gigantic house. 

Hux was standing in the kitchen that was bigger than Luke’s entire first floor with Mitaka and Bazine, who were sharing the fattest blunt Rey had ever seen. Bazine smirked at her and blew smoke in her direction. Rey’s eyes watered. 

“Dameron. Calrissian.” He glared at Rey, red eyebrows furrowed.

“Hey, Hugs,” Poe cooed, striding over to place a wet kiss on Hux’s cheek. Hux scrunched his eyes shut and physically recoiled. “Mwah. You miss me?”

“Like a cold sore.” Hux growled, pushing Poe away from him. He wiped his cheek with the back of his hand and eyed Rey again. “I see you brought someone new. Rey.” He gave her a curt nod.

“Yeah, y’know, gotta spread the love and booze,” Poe looked at the long stretch of kitchen counter covered in buckets of jungle juice and beer cans, rubbing his hands together, “Now what do we have on tap?”

“C’mon,” Finn said, taking Rey’s hand and leading her away, “Let’s try to find the girls.”

“You’re just gonna leave him there?” Rey asked, looking over her shoulder. Poe was dunking a solo cup into one of the mysterious buckets while Hux looked on in disgust.

“Trust me, he’ll be fine. He’ll find us later. Hey, I think I see them! Rose! Kay!” 

They had entered an enormous living room that was filled to the brim with drunk and sweaty high schoolers. Multiple leather couches and chairs had been pushed against the walls to make room for a rudimentary dance floor. A small table in the corner had a phone and charger set up on it, and people went up and added songs to the Spotify queue as they pleased. Squished together on a loveseat, Rey saw Rose and Kaydel, deep in conversation with solo cups in their hands. They looked up at the sound of Finn’s voice and waved them over. 

“You’re here!” Kaydel cried when they reached the girls, standing up to throw her arms around Rey after handing her drink to Rose. She was dressed in a pretty yellow sun dress and impossibly high heels that almost brought her up to face level with Rey. Finn slipped into her abandoned spot and greeted Rose. 

Things between Finn and Rose hadn’t always been the easiest. Freshman year, before Rey went to Coruscant High, Rose had a huge crush on Finn (“It was bad. I used to write ‘Rose Calrissian’ in all my journals,” Rose had confided one day over lunch). When she had finally mustered the courage to ask him out, he had rejected her on the grounds that he was very much not into girls. Rose had been crushed and the pair didn’t speak for months. It wasn’t until Finn and Poe started dating in September that Poe pushed Finn to rekindle their friendship. They had made up and were once again good friends. 

“You both look so cute,” Rey smiled, hugging Kaydel back. The petite blonde stepped away on wobbly feet and put her hands on her hips.

“Snap isn’t here yet, or at least I haven’t seen him. Will you come to the bathroom with me? I wanna double check my makeup and I don’t think I can walk on my own without busting my ass.”

“I’ll save our spot.” Rose offered. She was wearing high waisted shorts and a cute pink crop top with flowers embroidered on the shoulders. “Finn and I will people watch.”

“My favorite pastime.” Finn grinned and they put their heads close together, scanning the room for potential entertainment. Kaydel took Rey’s hand and they went off in search of a bathroom.

“There’s, like, seven bathrooms in this house. Hux must have his daily shits in a different bathroom for every day of the week.” Kaydel eyed doorways as they wandered through the house, searching for an open one. “Oh, there’s one!”

They quickly hurried into the bathroom before anybody else could snag it and locked the door. Rey settled herself on a plush mauve toilet seat cover while Kaydel started pulling makeup out of her purse and piling it onto the counter. 

“I got this lipstick in a subscription box but it’s not really my color.” Kaydel held up a tube of lipstick, opening it up to reveal a deep red. “I think it would look perfect on you. Wanna try it? I promise I don’t have germs.”

“Oh,” Rey hesitated, squirming a bit. Sure, she had put on some Dollar Tree eye makeup for today but she had never worn lipstick before. Growing up in foster care didn’t give much of an opportunity to be in touch with this part of being a teenage girl. Especially when foster mothers accused you of trying to look good for their husbands. “I don’t know how good it’ll look. I don’t really...put stuff on my lips.”

“How about I put it on you and if you hate it, you can take it off? I have wipes.” 

After a moments pause, Rey sighed and nodded.

“Okay, fine. But I’m taking it off if it looks like shit.”

Kaydel grinned and took Rey’s chin in her hand. “Fine by me. Now open your mouth and stick your lips out a bit....there we go...don’t move!” Rey tried to stay still as the waxy substance spread across her lips.”And done! Take a look.”

Rey stood to look at herself in the mirror

She looked...

Well, she looked pretty.

“Wow,” was all she could manage to say. The color really did suit her. The red went well with her dark brown hair and tanned skin. She stared at herself and wondered if she looked like her mother. She used to have a picture of her, old and tattered, but it had gotten lost somewhere between foster homes number three and four.

“You look awesome.” Kaydel said softly, resting her head on Rey’s shoulder as they looked into the mirror. She bit her lip. “Hey, can I ask you something?”

“Yeah?”

A pause.

“What happened with Ben?”

Rey felt her heart skip a beat. Ben. She had managed not to think about him since she got to the party. It was probably the longest she had gone without him on her mind in the ten months since they’ve met, since he proved himself to be the biggest asshole in the galaxy.

“You can totally tell me to fuck off if you don’t want to share, I get it. It’s just...” Kaydel sighed and began to reapply her mascara, “You look at him like he’s the rising sun and then pretend to hate him every time he’s brought up. You guys hung out a ton at the beginning of the year. What happened?”

Rey didn’t respond. She kept her eyes on her reflection while Kaydel finished reapplying her makeup, thankfully not digging deeper. She hadn’t told any of her friends, not even Finn, why she and Ben stopped speaking. She couldn’t think about the incident without wanting to cry or break something.

Finally, once Kaydel was done and repacking her purse, Rey gave a short, non committal answer.

“It’s complicated.”

(She’d remember this conversation in three hours when Ben grabbed her hand and pulled her out a bedroom window.)


	4. Chapter 4

Rey, Finn, and the girls spent the next hour in a tight circle on the dance floor, working up a sweat as they danced without much rhythm to the pulsating music. A steady mixture of oldies, House music, and latest hits blasted from the speakers. Most of the music Rey was exposed to were the Tibetan hymns that Luke played every morning and whatever was on Poe’s Spotify. She yelled out, “I like this song!” several times as they danced, making a mental note of the name so she could listen to it again later. Rose, the most experienced dancer in the group, put her hands on Rey’s hips and helped her move to the music with more flow. They all laughed as Rey stumbled through the motions of a dance called “The Wobble”. She looked at the faces of her friends and smiled. Her eyes watered; she never thought she would gain true, genuine friends. Never having stuck around places long enough to make meaningful connections, she started Coruscant High ready to keep to herself. She’d forever be thankful to have met them. 

“I love you guys!” Rey yelled over the music, grinning, reaching up to quickly wipe her eyes. 

“We love you!” Finn shouted back, throwing his arm over shoulders. Rey felt his burning skin on hers since he had tied his jacket around his waist after the first few songs. “Now lemme show you how to do the Cupid Shuffle!”

Eventually Snap appeared with Beaumont Kin around midnight, both reeking of weed and wearing their baseball letterman jackets. Snap’s eyes scanned the crowd until he saw them and waved, walking over with his hands shoved into his pockets and Beaumont, who looked to be hyping him up, close behind. Kaydel grabbed Rey and Rose’s arms, sharp nails digging in.

“He’s here, fuck, do I look okay? Oh my God, I’m so sweaty. That’s kinda hot though, right?” 

“So hot.” Rose assured her with a fierce nod.

“Hey, Kay.” Snap said in a nervous voice, pulling his hands out of his pockets and wiping them on his jeans. “You look nice.” He cleared his throat and quickly glanced at Beaumont, who shot him a thumbs up. 

“Same. I mean, so do you.” Kaydel replied, letting go of Rey and Rose’s arms. She flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder and smiled. 

“You, uh, you wanna dance? I’m a really bad dancer, actually, I have two left feet-“ Beau stomped on one of Snap’s left feet. “Ow! Fuck, bro. I mean, I’m not that bad. So...” Snap pointed to himself, “Uh...you, me, dance?” 

“Jesus Christ,” Finn whispered, grimacing. “This is painful.” 

“Sure,” Kaydel grinned and took Snap’s hand, pulling him deeper into the throngs of dancing teens. Snap looked back one more time at his friend for reassurance before they were lost in the crowds.

Beaumont just shook his head, “God, that was horrible to watch.”

“Super bad.” Rey agreed empathetically. She remembered her conversation with Kaydel in the bathroom and wondered if that’s how she acted when Ben was around. She really hoped not.

“Hey, I heard Phasma’s starting a Just Dance competition downstairs. Winner gets a fifty dollar Chipotle card. I’m willing to risk it for free steak bowls.” Beau told them, motioning towards the stairs leading to the basement.

“Count me out.” Rey and Finn said at the same time. 

“I’m a terrible dancer.” Rey elaborated.

“I’m not doing Phasma’s sadistic loser punishments. Not after last time.” Finn shuddered. 

Rey remembered hearing that story. Finn lost a very intense game of Go Fish at a party in February and had to eat a live cricket. “The crunch it made haunts my dreams,” he told her.

“What about you, Tico? You’re a great dancer.” Beaumont asked, looking at Rose. Her cheeks flushed at the compliment. She bit her bottom lip and wrung her hands together.

“I dunno...” She seemed to ponder it for a minute before taking a deep breath and grinning. “Fuck it, why not? Maybe I’ll get lucky!”

“Godspeed, girl.” Finn said, suppressing another shudder. 

Rey watched as Rose followed Beaumont off the dance floor and down to the basement, noticing him put his hand on the small of her back as he opened the door. Huh. Was that a thing?

“Are they a thing?” Rey asked Finn, taking his hands in hers. They stood face to face slowly rocking back and forth to some song about big booty bitches. Finn shrugged.

“Who knows. Seems like everyone is getting boo’d up.” He raised an eyebrow. “Except for you.”

Rey blushes and shrugged back, “I’m not interested in anyone.” 

Finn graciously pretended to believe her and they continued to sway. The song faded out and a slower, smoother beat replaced it. 

_ “I miss my cocoa butter kisses, hope you smile when you listen...” _

Finn grinned and took Rey’s shoulders in his hands. He moved her so she was standing next to him instead of in front.

“What are you doing?” 

“Watch this,” he warned, pointing in the direction of the kitchen.

Rey didn’t have to wait long until she could hear Poe’s voice loud and clear over the music. 

“Move, move, move, I’m gay!” Poe fought his way through the crowd, shoving a startled Zorri out of the way a little too roughly.

“Hey! Fucker!”

Finn held his arms out and seconds later Poe crashed into them, throwing his own arms around Finn’s waist. His Hawaiian shirt was half unbuttoned and he had a tie that did not belong to him wrapped around his head.

“Baby, it’s our song.” He slurred, clearly having enjoyed his fair share of jungle juice since they last saw him. Finn patted his back.

“I know. I knew you were gonna be knockin’ bitches down to get over here.”

“I did. I was Lightning McQueen. Kachow. Sorry, Zorri!” Poe yelled over his shoulder.

“Fuck you, Dameron!” Zorri flipped him the bird before turning back to her girlfriend, Jannah. 

Poe trained his eyes as best as he could on Rey and pointed a wobbly finger inches from her nose.

“I’m sorry, cutie, but you gotta fuck off. I’m dancing with my man.” He shooed her away before squeezing impossibly closer to Finn.

Rey laughed and held her hands up, “Gotcha.” She looked around the room to see if she could find an empty couch. She saw one tucked into the corner that wasn’t covered in too many empty bottles and only one passed out guy. Weaving her way towards it, she brushed some solo cups off the cushion and plopped down with a sigh. She closed her eyes for a moment and tried to relax. Dancing had tired her out, even though she considered herself to be in fairly good shape. She lifted up her arm and gave her armpit a quick sniff. Yup, and she had forgotten to put deodorant on. Wonderful. The brunette cracked an eye open and looked back at her friends. 

Finn and Poe danced like they were the only two people in the universe. Arms wrapped right around each other like someone was trying to tear them apart, as if anyone would dare. Poe had his head resting on Finn’s shoulder, eyes closed as they swayed back and forth to the music. Finn peppered his forehead with gentle kisses, looking happy as can be.

_ “I told you I am down for the worse or the better...” _

Rey wondered what it would be like this time next year when Poe would be getting ready to go off to college and leave them behind. He sometimes drove her crazy, with his stubbornness and constant need to be right. Playing board games with him was an absolute nightmare. He once refused to speak to her for a week because she didn’t pick his card during a game of Cards Against Humanity. He and Finn could bicker like an old married couple at times, but they loved each other like they really had been married fifty years. 

Poe was an integral part of their group. It was always Rey and Finn and Poe. Rey and Finn without Poe didn’t feel right. Who knows, maybe she’d be be placed in another home before that happened. Rey felt her stomach twist and wished she had a drink in her hand. That’s enough depressing thoughts for now, she thought. 

She pushed herself up from the couch and headed towards the kitchen, wondering if Hux would have any Captain Morgan. She didn’t drink often, but found she enjoyed an occasional rum and coke. 

“Hello, Rey.” Mitaka sat at the end of the long kitchen counter where she stopped to look for drinks, his eyes red as a fire truck and staring mindlessly into space. He was propping his head up with his hands like it was the only thing keeping him upright. She didn’t know him well, although he was a sophomore like herself.

“Hey, Dopheld...you okay?” She waved a hand in front of his face. He didn’t flinch.

“I am, what you might call, ‘bugging out’. Armitage is getting me water because I forgot how to walk.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah...” Mitaka said softly. “Looking for something? I can’t move but I’ll probably know where it is.”

“Captain Morgan and soda?”

“Captain is behind the orange bucket to my left. Soda is in the fridge. Cups are everywhere.” True to his word, he didn’t move a muscle. Rey wondered how long he could go without blinking.

Rey thanked him and went to grab the amber bottle of rum. She looked around the table for a cup and saw a few open sleeves of red solos, snagging one and pouring herself a healthy serving of booze. 

Walking over to the gigantic fridge, Rey looked into her cup and wondered if she had poured a bit too much. She was never good at portioning things properly. Finn liked to call her ‘extra’. With her eyes down, she didn’t notice a tall figure step directly in front of her until she bumped into him.

“Oof- sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.” She looked up and saw Hux’s signature scowl set on her. He crossed his arms, water bottle in one hand and his own drink in the other. 

“No shit.” He grumbled. Rey gulped and tried to step around him. Hux stuck his foot out to block her. 

“A moment of your time.” He winced, as if it hurt him to have to speak to her. “Have you seen a certain annoying asshole? About 6’3”, big ears, hard to miss.”

Rey felt her face go red. Of course she knew exactly who Hux was talking about.

“No, I haven’t had the misfortune.”

Hux smirked at that.

“I see.” 

He moved his foot and Rey was able to slip past him, reaching for the fridge. She struggled to open the heavy door.

“C’mon...” Another sharp tug popped the door open. She eyed the rows upon rows of assorted sodas and grabbed a coke, cracking it open right there and pouring it into her cup.

“Rey?”

She turned and set the now empty can on the counter. Hux was still standing in the same spot, looking at her with an unreadable expression. 

“If you do see him, do me a favor. Talk to the poor bastard. He has been absolutely insufferable.” Hux smirked again and went over to Mitaka, who was looking pale.

“I don’t care if he’s....” Rey trailed off when she realized Hux wasn’t paying attention. Mitaka had started to hyperventilate and Hux was patting his back with as much comfort as someone like Hux could provide. Feeling the need to escape, Rey looked for an exit. Remembering the Just Dance competition that was supposedly happening in the basement, she shuffled over to the stairwell leading down and hoped whatever was going on was entertaining. 

(Going to the basement would be her first mistake of the night.)


	5. Chapter 5

“Do you wanna get pizza tonight?”

Rey looked up from her copy of ‘The Bell Jar’, her assigned reading for Ms. Holdo’s class. She had brought her homework to Skywalker Mixed Martial Arts Academy under the guise of helping out the front desk if needed. Totally not to sit in on a certain someone’s beginner’s class. No way. 

Ben was standing in front of her, pushing hair as black as the belt around his waist away from his eyes. He was always pushing his hair out of his face with those long fingers. He once let Rey put it his bangs in a ponytail that stuck straight up like a sprout. She was able to snap a picture before he ripped it out, grumbling about looking like Happiny. The picture was her current screensaver (although she never told anyone and deliberately covered her phone if anyone was close enough to possibly see). 

The dojo was nearly empty, a few straggling parents trying to get their children out the door with promises that they’d be back next weekend. 

“Bye-bye, Senpai!” One teeny girl ran over to Ben and wrapped tiny arms around a long leg. Rey felt her heart squeeze; she had a soft spot for the little kids that Ben taught.

“Bye, Sabine. Good job today.” Ben leaned down to pat her shoulder. Sabine grinned up at him before skipping back to her parents who exchanged waves with Ben and left the room, leaving the two teenagers to themselves.

“No Halloween plans? I thought you would be going to Hux’s party.” Rey tried to keep her composure. It wouldn’t be the first time they hung out outside of the studio or Luke’s house. They sometimes got milkshakes with Finn and Poe after school, or went to see a movie with Leia or Luke on the weekends. But they had never hung out alone. Rey closed her book and shoved it into her backpack along with the notebook and pencils she had spread out around her on the bench. She looked up to meet Ben’s hazel eyes; doe eyes like his mother, always betraying what his face didn’t show. 

Ben snorted.

“No, I hate costume parties. What am I gonna do, go as the Karate Kid?” He motioned towards his karategi and bare feet. 

Rey laughed and felt her phone buzz in her pocket. She quickly pulled it out to see a text from Kaydel asking a question about the French homework. Below it was a different text from Finn asking if twelve was still a good time to pick her up, sent at eleven-thirty. She glanced at the top of her phone. Eleven fifty-nine. 

“Shit, I gotta go. Pizza sounds good...pick me up at seven?” She stood, slinging her backpack over her shoulder.

Ben smiled, a rare sight that made Rey’s heart skip a beat.

“It’s a date.”

—

Hux’s basement, like the rest of the house, was gigantic. Rey reached the bottom of the stairs and greeted by a huge pool room, equipped with a pool of Olympic proportions and a hot tub that had several people jammed into it. At the far end of the room there were two doors, one shut and the other open. Rey could see people in the open doorway and hear music. That must be where the competition was being held.

Rey made sure to keep some distance from the pool as she walked across the room, kicking empty bottles and the odd condom wrapper out of the way. Although she liked to go to the beach when she had the chance, and listened to calming ocean sounds at night to help her fall asleep, Rey had never learned how to swim. No one had ever bothered to teach her. Finn promised to teach her once the school year was over and they had the summer to do whatever they desired. 

Rey passed the closed door and heard the unmistakable sound of something puking their guts out and frantic voices.

“You’re fiiiine, you’re fiiiine, aim for the toilet, honey, you’re okaaaay....not on my shoe!”

Rey cringed and quickly moved on, feeling her own stomach churn. She didn’t like vomit. 

She entered the room and saw twenty or so kids squished together on couches and giant beanbag chairs tossed in a semi-circle facing a flat screen that took up most of a wall. The Just Dance 2020 start up screen was flashing across the TV and was the only thing illuminating the dark room. Rose stood in front of it, looking like she was trying to catch her breath and bouncing on the balls of her feet.

Standing next to the TV was Gwen Phasma, megaphone in hand, wearing white shorts and a silver tank top that accentuated her ripped figure. She was Coruscant High‘s first female football Captain and had the demeanor of a seasoned drill sergeant. A player on Naboo Academy’s football team once called her a ‘freak of nature’ and Phasma held him by his ankles over the bleachers until he apologized. No one fucked with Phasma.

“Rey! Over here!”

Rey looked over to see Beaumont sitting in one of the beanbag chairs closest to where Phasma was stationed, flailing one arm above his head. As she got closer she could see his face was covered from forehead to chin in black scribbles.

“Uh...’dumb bitch baby’? ‘I suck cocks for free’? ‘Please feed me cummies’?” Rey plopped down next to him, holding her drink with both hands so she didn’t spill. 

Beaumont put his hand to his forehead, as if forgetting he also had a penis with comically large balls drawn there.

“Oh, yeah. That was my punishment. I got off easy. You should see Larma; she’s throwing up because she had to chug hot sauce.”

Rey grimaced. That was who she had heard in the bathroom. “Yikes.”

“It’s rough. But Rose is absolutely crushing it,” Beaumont pointed to Rose with a proud grin. “Total powerhouse. She’s going up against the champion next though, so she’s got her work cut out for her. He’s never been defeated, at least not at any party I’ve been to.”

“Who’s the champion?” Rey narrowed her eyes and sipped her drink, relishing the burn down her throat. 

Beaumont opened his mouth to respond but his answer was drowned out by the sound of Phasma talking with the megaphone.

“Alright, plebs!” She boomed, “It has been an impressive competition tonight. Our lovely newbie has proved herself to be one to beat.” 

Drunken cheers erupted through the room and Rose beamed. She caught Rey’s eye and gave her a thumbs up. Rey raised her cup to her before bringing it to her lips. She was curious to see who Rose would be going up against. Both Rose and her older sister Paige, who was at college now, had grown up taking hip-hop, jazz, and contemporary dance classes. Rose had won several dance competitions throughout the years, the most recent one being two weeks ago. Whoever this champion was had to be good, and Rey didn’t know any other dancers. 

“But, she still has to face our reigning champion in order to save herself from the final punishment.” Phasma said, putting a hand on her hip. “Everyone please give a warm welcome to the Supreme Leader of Just Dance... Ben Solo!”

Rey choked on her rum and coke as the room began to cheer and chant, “Solo, Solo, Solo!”

“You good, Rey?” Beaumont gave her a few firm pats on the back as she spit her drink and saliva back into her cup. He had the decency to not look disgusted. 

“Yeah, yeah,” she rasped, wiping her mouth and doing her best not to smear her lipstick. “I’m okay.” You’re the fucking opposite of okay, she thought, you idiot. “Ben? Really?”

“Wait until you see him, dude. He moves like he’s boneless. Kinda creepy, if we’re being real. There he is.”

Rey looked up and saw Ben manifest from the shadows of the room and take his place next to Rose. She hadn’t even noticed him when she came in. How could she not see him? Had he seen her? He hadn’t looked in her direction yet and gave no indication that he knew Rey was even there.

He gave Rose a curt nod and said something Rey couldn’t hear. Phasma tossed him the second Wii remote and he strapped it around his wrist. 

Rey groaned and slumped back. God fucking damn it, he looked good. 

Ben almost always wore black, and tonight was no exception. A short-sleeved black button up that clung to his muscular torso was tucked into dark chinos. It hardly looked like a comfortable outfit to dance in and Rey couldn’t tear her eyes away. She groaned again. 

“Fuck.”

Beaumont gave her as sympathetic a look as someone who had a pussy drawn on his chin could and patted her shoulder. Meanwhile, Phasma cleared her throat and held the megaphone up. The room went quiet; her every move commanded attention. 

“First, we need a song. Solo?”

Ben motioned towards Rose, who looked less sure of herself now and was nervously fiddling with her remote. 

“Tico can pick,” he said in that soft, deep voice of his. It shouldn’t have made something deep in Rey’s stomach flutter but it did and she resisted the urge to punch herself in the fucking face.

Rose scanned through the songs, biting her lip thoughtfully. After a minute of searching, she landed on the chosen one.

“We’ll do ‘bad guy’. Extreme mode.” 

The group once again erupted in cheers. 

“Love Billie! Love that funky little queen!” Someone cried.

“Excellent choice!” Phasma said, giving a nod of approval. “As we all know, the winner of tonight’s competition will win a fifty dollar gift card to Chipotle...and the loser has to jump into the pool.” She paused, pale eyes scanning the crowd. 

Low murmurs wafted around the room. Phasma was well known for her cruel and unusual punishments. Just jumping in the pool didn’t seem worse than getting obscenities written on your face or having to chug Tabasco. 

Phasma smirked, the devil in her smile. 

“Completely naked!”

The room exploded in loud gasps and howls of laughter. Rey slapped her hand to her mouth, suppressing a squeal, her drink nearly falling from her other hand. Rose will die if she has to do that, Rey thought, and I will die if Ben has to do that. She brought her cup to her lips with a shaking hand and quickly downed the rest of its contents. No way could she be sober for either result. 

Rose’s face turned as red as her namesake while Ben’s remained a expressionless mask. Next to Rey, Beaumont’s jaw dropped as he cried out.

“What the fuck, Phasma! That’s insane!”

“Insanely humiliating? Yes, yes it is.” Phasma kept smirking and put down the megaphone. “Shall we begin?”

(Rey could be eating ice cream in bed watching Bad Girls Club Reruns if she had just stayed home. Don’t be like Rey.)


End file.
